As part of The Sandbox’s Game Maker and Game Client 0.11 update, we’ve introduced three new Abilities Players can equip in-game: Flight, Air Dance, and Double Jump. To help our Creator community understand and implement these exciting features, we’ve launched a four-part series guiding you through each step.

1. Abilities Part One: Use Cases & Implementation Guide
2. Abilities Part Two: How to Use & Implement Flight
3. Abilities Part Three: How to Use & Implement Double Jump
4. Abilities Part Four: How to Use & Implement Air Dance

Keep reading to learn about Flight and how to implement it into your next Experience.

Reach New Heights With Flight

Players can use Flight to fly for a short duration by pressing the “F” key on their keyboard, allowing them to briefly ascend and reach new heights and areas that would normally be inaccessible. This mechanic enables Players to explore hidden areas, discover new paths in the environment, and opens up opportunities for creative level design.

Consideration must be given to how flight can be utilized and accessed, as well as how it affects the overall layout of the level, since implementing flight could disrupt level designs by making previously inaccessible areas accessible.

Use Cases for Flight

Use cases for Flight are abundant, but below are some of the most common.

• Avoiding Hazards: Players can use Flight to bypass environmental hazards like fire, spikes, or electrified floors that are dangerous to traverse on foot. By flying over them, they can reach safer ground.
• Puzzle Solving: Flight can add a vertical layer to puzzle designs. For example, Players may need to fly to trigger switches or collect floating items.
• Environmental Exploration: Flight could open secret or hidden areas that are otherwise difficult to find or reach, such as floating islands, high towers, or the tops of large structures that contain treasure or lore-related content.
• Navigating Tight Spaces: On certain levels, Flight could be used to navigate tight vertical spaces or ascend through shafts where jumping would be impossible or too slow.

Since Flight duration is limited, it is important to consider height restrictions or include areas where the Player can safely land to maintain balance in gameplay.

Level Design Considerations

Flight allows Players to conquer new lands, so Creators should carefully consider key dynamics when building new Experiences or updating existing ones to ensure their level designs remain intact with the inclusion of this new Ability.

• Flight Duration and Limitations: Since Flight is time-limited, careful balancing is needed to ensure Players can’t bypass too much of a level or trivialize challenges.
• Height Management: Levels need to be designed with height progression in mind. If Players can fly upwards, there must be meaningful reasons to do so, such as platforms, hidden areas, or objectives. Verticality should be intentional and add to the Experience without making it feel like the Player is just skipping portions of the game.
• Obstacle Placement: The placement of obstacles needs to consider that Players can now bypass ground-level hazards. Consideration should be given to mid-air obstacles, moving platforms, or flying enemies that can challenge Players while airborne.
• Unlocking Progression: Flight could be tied to specific sections of a game, unlocking new areas previously unreachable. Players might return to earlier levels to access previously hidden areas after gaining the Flight ability, encouraging exploration and replayability.
• Invisible Boundaries and Skyboxes: Levels with Flight must also consider how to implement invisible boundaries or skyboxes to prevent Players from flying out of the intended gameplay space. The design should make the Player feel free to explore while subtly guiding them to stay within the level’s parameters.

Hover Using Flight

With flying, Players can now hover. This allows them to jump onto a platform and hover in the air if the platform sinks or destroys itself. Hovering gives Players the ability to avoid certain traps or prevent themselves from falling by hovering above the platform just in time before it disappears.

Use Cases

Timing the hover correctly can save the Player’s life by allowing them to stay in the air before platforms vanish or traps are triggered.

• Precise Platforming: Players can use hovering to make precise adjustments while jumping between platforms, allowing them to better navigate challenging sections that require careful timing.
• Puzzle Interaction: Hovering can be used to interact with floating objects, such as switches or items that require precise timing to collect or activate while in the air.
• Environmental Manipulation: Players may need to hover to trigger environmental elements, such as moving platforms, that are otherwise inaccessible without careful timing.
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Level Design Considerations

• Timing and Mechanics: Level design must consider the timing of hovering. Players should have enough opportunities to practice the hover mechanic without making levels too hard.
• Environmental Hazards: Levels should include hazards that interact with hovering, such as areas where Players can only hover for limited durations or traps that activate based on the Player’s height, such as small corridors where the Player may have to hover to avoid a trap.
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Flying Forward Quickly

With Flight, the Player can now use the sprint button to quickly fly forward or change direction, making flying moves similar to Superman. This opens up many new and interesting ways to explore and engage with the Creator’s Experiences.

Use Cases

The player can use Flight to access new areas and quickly fly forward through a section, allowing them to reach locations faster or complete areas within a certain time frame.

• Timed Challenges: Sprint flying can be used for timed challenges, where Players must race through an area or reach objectives quickly.
• Exploration of Large Spaces: Players can cover vast distances more quickly, allowing for expansive environments where flying is necessary to explore distant areas or reach high vantage points.
• Aerial Puzzles: Players could use sprint flying to solve aerial puzzles, such as flying through rings, hitting switches in quick succession, or reaching distant platforms that require precise control of speed and direction.

Level Design Considerations

• Speed Control and Precision: Flying at high speeds introduces the risk of overshooting or colliding with obstacles. Design needs to ensure the player has enough control to adjust direction and speed mid-flight.
• Difficulty Balancing: Sprint flying makes traversal faster, but it can also make some areas too easy to bypass. Design levels with specific sections where sprint flying is beneficial but not overpowered.
• Open Spaces: Levels that accommodate sprint flying should include larger, open spaces where the player can make use of the Ability. Expansive environments such as open fields, large caverns, or futuristic cities with tall buildings can encourage the use of sprint flying for exploration and traversal.
• Path Variety: Levels can incorporate multiple paths, some of which might only be accessible through sprint flying. Hidden shortcuts, elevated areas, or sections blocked by hazards that require sprinting mid-flight can offer rewards for players who master the mechanic.

Unleash Your Creativity with Abilities

By utilizing Abilities, you can introduce new ways for players to interact with your 3D environment, adding layers of interactivity and immersion to your experiences. Whether enhancing movement with Flight and Double Jump or adding festive elements with Air Dance, these features elevate your worlds and deepen player engagement.

Get started today and explore the transformative potential of Abilities in shaping your creations in The Sandbox.

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